brandon copeland is a line backer and currently financial class.member of the cnbc invest in you financial wellness council. longest introduction of all time but we're glad to have you here. >> glad to be here >> how did this class come about, and what do you cover in it >> this class came about with myself i was a detroit lion before. and myself and a couple of my teammates were riding around the city trying to understand the landscape from a real estate perspective. i also flip houses and stuff and during the ride, one of the players was like, man, i just wish when i was in school we talked about credit and buying your first house and taxes and budgeting because it would probably save me so much tim and headache and i was like, that's not just something athletes need. like we all could use that that's where the idea came about and started pursuing it. >> you pitched it to a professor at penn, which was your alma mater. >> yep, yep. >> so how many kids are in the class? and they're not all athletes, i assume they may not be any athletes >> we tapp

in jersey city, newse j >> now to a professor who is a believe if player and nfl linebacker brandon copeland success and off the field he plays it safe with his money andn as s reports he's teachingdo others t the same. ♪ ♪ >> on the field, brandon copeland playso win. off the field, he's changing the game. >>ashe conversation changed from what do i have now to how can i use what i have now so i don't ha to depend on anyone else to give me aor paycheck the rest of my life. >> a baltimore native, copeland grew up surrounded by the sport. his grandfather, r hillkin spent 11 years in the nfl. for copeland, football came naturally, but it was the he developed in the classroom that really paved the way. >> my grandfather made it cool for me to be smart, bed educate pushed to get as and bs. and it was that ethic that landed him at one of the most prestigious high schools around. >> i was fortunate to go to a highchool calle gilman in baltimore and the head coach of my football team, he ran his own hedge fund, but as a young kid o didn't what he did and had no idea, and i just knew that he was pret

. >> reporter: on the field, brandon copeland plays to win.ff the field, he's changing the game >> the conversation is changed from what do i have now to how can i use what i have now so that i don't have to depend on anyone else to give me a paycheck for the rest of my life >> reporter: a baltimore native, copeland grew up surrounded by the sport. his grandfather spent 11 years in the nfl. >> my grandfather made it cool for me to be smart, be educated, and push to get a's and b's. >> reporter: it was that ethic that landed him at one of the most prestigious high schools around. >> i was fortunate to go to a high school called gilman in baltimore, and the head coach of my football team, he ran his own hedge fund one summer, i went to work for him. >> reporter: a summer that would help shape his future love of finance. he quickly learned that making money and understanding how to take it to make more would be his ticket to financial freedom. an ideology he fine tuned when he attended the prestigious wharton school of business at pennsylvania. >

. >> on the field, brandon copeland plays to win.he's changing the game. >> the conversation has changed from what do i have now to how can i use what i have now so that i don't have to depend on anyone else to give me ahe pa for the rest of my life. >> a baltimore native, copeland grew up surrounded by the sport. his grandfather, roy hilton spent 11 yearsn the nfl. for doep copeland, football came naturally, but it was the skills he developed in e classroom that really paved the way. >> my grandfather made i cool for me to be smart, be educated and pushed to get as and bs. >> it was that ethic that landed him at one of e most schools aroundh >> i was fortunate to go to al high schoo called gilman in baltimore and the head coach of my football team, he ran his own hedge fund, but as a young kid i didn't know what he did. i had no idea. i just knew that he was pretty well off and so one summer i went to work for him. >> a summer that would help shape his future love of finance. >> he quickly learned thatey making m and understanding h